US Labels Afghan Taliban Regime a 'Sponsor of Wrongful Detention'

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Rubio calls for the release of American citizens held in Afghanistan, including Habibi and Coyle.
The Taliban is accused of kidnapping individuals for ransom or political favors.
The U.S. warns it might impose restrictions on U.S. passports for travel to Afghanistan.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio criticized Afghanistan on Monday over the detention of American nationals, indicating that this could result in a ban on U.S. citizens traveling to the country. Rubio announced that the U.S. is designating Afghanistan’s Taliban government as a “state sponsor of wrongful detention” and demands the release of all detained Americans, such as Mahmood Habibi and Dennis Coyle.

Rubio stated, “The Taliban continues to use terrorist tactics, kidnapping people for ransom or policy swaps. These heinous actions need to stop.” He further explained that traveling to Afghanistan is now unsafe for Americans due to the risk of unjust detention.

The U.S. also seeks the recovery of Paul Overby’s remains; Overby, an author, was last seen near Afghanistan’s border with Pakistan in 2014, according to sources familiar with the case.

The sources suggest that if the Taliban does not meet U.S. demands, the U.S. might restrict the use of American passports for travel to Afghanistan—a measure currently only applied to North Korea.

Previously, on February 27, Rubio had issued a similar designation against Iran, the first under an executive order signed by then-President Donald Trump in September. While warning that travel restrictions could be imposed over Iran’s detention of U.S. citizens, no such measures have been enacted, though the U.S. and Israel declared war against Iran shortly after the designation.

Attempts to reach the Afghan government for comment were unsuccessful. Afghanistan’s Taliban leadership has denied holding Habibi, who led the country’s civil aviation authority.

CBS News was the first to report earlier on Monday that the U.S. was considering designating Afghanistan as a “state sponsor of wrongful detention.”